Maritsa

The Maritsa, Meriç or Evros (Bulgarian: Марица, Marica; Ancient Greek: Ἕβρος, Hébros; Greek: Έβρος, Évros; Latin: Hebrus; RomanizedThracian: Evgos or Ebros; Turkish: Meriç) is, with a length of 480 km (300 mi) (of which 309 km or 192 mi in Bulgaria)[3], the longest river that runs solely in the interior of the Balkans, and one of the largest by discharge. Its drainage area is about 53,000 km2 (20,000 sq mi), of which 66.2% in Bulgaria, 27.5% in Turkey and 6.3% in Greece.[2] It has its origin in the Rila Mountains in Western Bulgaria, flowing southeast between the Balkan and Rhodope Mountains, past Plovdiv and Parvomay (where the Mechka and the Kayaliyka join it) to Edirne, Turkey. East of Svilengrad, Bulgaria, the river flows eastwards, forming the border between Bulgaria (on the north bank) and Greece (on the south bank), and then between Turkey and Greece. At Edirne, the river flows through Turkish territory on both banks, then turns towards the south and forms the border between Greece on the west bank and Turkey on the east bank to the Aegean Sea. Turkey was given a small sector on the west bank opposite the city of Edirne. The river enters the Aegean Sea near Enez, where it forms a river delta. The Tundzha is its chief tributary; the Arda is another one. The lower course of the Maritsa/Evros forms part of the Bulgarian-Greek border and most of the Greek–Turkish border. The upper Maritsa valley is a principal east-west route in Bulgaria. The unnavigable river is used for power production and irrigation.

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The earliest known name of the river is Euros (Εύρος, Alcman, 7th–6th century BC).[4] Indo-European *ewru and Ancient Greek εύρύs meant "wide".[4] The Indo-European "wr" sound shifted in Thracian to "br", creating the Thracian name Ebros.[4] Thereafter, the river began to be known as Hebros in Greek and Latin.[5] Rather than an origin as "wide river", an alternative hypothesis is that Hebros meant "goat" in Thracian.[6]

Since, when first attested, Europe referred only to Thrace proper,[7] the name of the continent is possibly derived from this river.[citation needed]

While the name Έβρος (Hebros) was used in Ancient Greek, the name Μαρίτσα (Maritsa) had become standard before the ancient form Έβρος (now: Évros) was artificially restituted in Modern Greek.[8] The name Maritsa may derive from a mountain near the mouth of the river known in antiquity as Μηρισός or Μήριζος, Latinized as Merit(h)us.[4]

The Maritsa/Evros river has become one route for illegal migrants arriving into the EU. Many people, from Asia and Africa have used the Maritsa route after agreements sometimes seem to temporarily block other routes e.g. across the Mediterranean Sea to Italy and Spain.[9] A border barrier was erected on the Greek side in 2012, which has prevented many from entering Greece.

The lower course of the river Maritsa/Evros, where it forms the border of Greece and Turkey, is very vulnerable to flooding. For about 4 months every year, the low lands around the river are flooded. This causes significant economic damage (loss of agricultural production and damage to infrastructure), which is estimated at several hundreds million Euro.[10]

Recent large floods took place in 2006 and 2007. Several causes have been proposed: more rainfall due to climate change, deforestation in the Bulgarian part of the catchment area, increased land use in the flood plains and difficult communication between the three countries.[10]